Thursday, June 4, 2015

FAIR AND BALANCED: GOOD ARTICLE ON THE EMENIES OF POPE FRANCIS!

Francis needs to keep his ‘enemies’ close

The following article printed today in the Catholic Herald is quite good and quite revealing. I won't comment further other than to highlight in bold what I've been saying all along!

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As the crucial family synod approaches, his critics could prove his greatest allies

A French journalist working on a documentary about opposition to
the Pope recently asked Cardinal Raymond Burke if he was an enemy of
Francis. The reply was illuminating. “Well, I certainly hope he’s not my
enemy,” retorted the former head of the Vatican’s supreme court, who
now occupies a largely ceremonial sinecure as patron of the Knights of
Malta.

Does the Pope really have enemies? Catholics used to pray in the
liturgy that he would be saved from them, but it was taken for granted
then that we were referring to enemies outside the Church. There remain
terror groups like ISIS that would like to harm him physically. But what
might shock some Catholics is the notion that the Pope might have
“enemies” inside the Church. And, as I will argue, they may actually
turn out to be his greatest allies at this October’s crucial family
synod.

Since the Counter-Reformation, and the definition of papal
infallibility in 1870, the authority of the Roman pontiff has seemed
absolute. But after the Second Vatican Council what was always a reality
has become more visible: all popes encounter questioning and even
opposition in implementing their policies for the governance of the
Church.

Resistance is often to be found not only in the diverse reality of
the wider Church, but even within what has to many appeared as the inner
sanctum of absolute papal power: the Roman Curia. Benedict XVI resigned
precisely because he believed that only a younger and stronger man
could overcome this insidious internal foe.

Cardinal Burke’s response to the French reporter highlights an
important fact: if we are to understand who the Pope’s enemies may be,
we have to start by asking to whom he may at least appear as an enemy.

Looking at Catholic opinion worldwide, all the indications are that
the Pope enjoys enormous and unprecedented popularity among the ordinary
faithful. A cursory acquaintance with Catholic bloggers, however, will
reveal there is no unanimity about the wisdom of much of Francis’
action and teaching. To the extent that the unease often comes from some
of the most committed and informed circles of Catholic opinion, their
minority status should prevent us from dismissing them out of hand.

The Pope has been unswerving as a critic of untrammelled capitalism
and its effects on the poor. This has won him critics among those who
adhere to the more dogmatic versions of free market ideology. In
general, the more strident of these voices come from the other side of
the Atlantic and have relatively little influence among British
Catholics.

In America, in particular, the critical voices come from both outside
and inside the Church. Those who are Catholics, who come usually from
more theologically conservative quarters, suffer from an embarrassing
disadvantage. Criticism of papal teaching has hitherto been associated
with theological liberals, and those who are now feeling the heat were
often wont to club the “dissenters” over the head with enthusiastic
assertions of papal teaching authority.

How do Francis’s critics react now that the boot is seemingly
on the other foot? The tendency is to distinguish between authentic
magisterial teaching and what some affirm is merely the personal opinion
of the Pope. This point is sound if it concerns the manner of the
teaching – an off-the-cuff remark in an interview doesn’t have the same
weight as an encyclical. But these distinctions are on shaky ground when
they concern the subject matter of the teaching; morality is not solely
about private behaviour. Papal teaching on economic justice is just as
much part of the Church’s Magisterium as teaching on life issues and
sexual morality. Indeed, together these form a seamless whole.

In fact, the Pope’s combative statements on social justice contain
nothing new. They are essentially in continuity not only with those of
his immediate predecessors, but also with papal social teaching back to
Leo XIII. The selective moralising and loyalty of some of the culture
warriors should be seen for what it is. We can expect more of it when
the Pope releases his environmental encyclical on June 16.

Another important group of critics are those who argue that Francis
is replacing the clear Magisterium of recent popes with a style of
teaching that seems unclear and even contradictory. Their worries were
reinforced when loyal servants of Benedict XVI were ejected from
positions of influence and when Francis explicitly disavowed the retired
pope’s projects, such as the liturgical “reform of the reform”.

The disarray of some laity is evident from the blogs, where
expressions of legitimate concern sometimes stray over the boundary into
disrespectful carping and, shamefully, even insult and invective.

Yet concern goes beyond the ranks of conservative laity. Francis
often talks as if he has an animus against the pious, even against the
clergy as a whole. It’s true that the latter can exhibit a caste
mentality and a sense of entitlement. That these faults seem resurgent
among the young is largely a reaction against the dilution of the
priestly identity, which occurred from the late 1960s as the teachings
of Vatican II were poorly interpreted through a secularising lens.
Similarly, some pious people show little compassion towards the less
virtuous and little understanding of their struggles.

Nevertheless, some
feel that Francis is overlooking the positive elements of the witness
of those clergy and laity who are trying to follow the Church’s
teaching, often at the cost of real sacrifice.
Few will admit it, but let’s be honest: Francis also has critics in
the episcopate. Some bishops privately express serious misgivings about
both the style and substance of his governance. The Italian episcopate, I
am told, is seriously divided. Although his position at the head of the
bishops’ conference reinforces his natural discretion, Cardinal Angelo
Bagnasco is said to be prominent among the discontented. There is also
reportedly much disaffection in Poland, where bishops are worried that
the legacy of St John Paul II is being dismantled. In the United States,
the promotion of reputed liberals such as Archbishop Blaise Cupich, who
blazed a lonely trail among an increasingly conservative episcopate
until Francis catapulted him to the major see of Chicago, has heightened
a sense of unease among some bishops.

And what of the Roman Curia, that traditional hotbed of faction and
intrigue? It is becoming increasingly apparent that reform is not only
destined to be a slow and piecemeal process, but is unlikely ever to
assume the revolutionary proportions many were hoping for. The
diplomats, whose dominance Benedict had sought to diminish, seem firmly
back in charge of the structures, while a kitchen cabinet of curial
outsiders is said to be guiding a Pope who seems determined to bypass
curial structures and proceedings to achieve his goals.

Since many cardinals voted for Francis precisely in the hope of a
root and branch pruning of the Curia, the sense of disappointment is
bound to grow. Many of his electors were Ratzingerians frustrated by the
barely concealed way in which Benedict’s projects were hindered or
ignored by his collaborators, and they were assured that his legacy
would be respected. Some of these imply they are feeling not merely
disappointed, but cheated. The promotion of officials who have leapfrogged more experienced
colleagues because of their closeness to those who have the Pope’s ear
has reinforced a sense of resentment among many who have no theological
axe to grind. They argue that, rather than moral reform, the change of
atmosphere conceals nothing more than the very classical triumph of a
faction.

In no area has the existence of opposition to the Pope become more
visible than in the discussions surrounding the family synod. The
outpourings of frustration from those who thought that last year’s synod
was being manipulated were directed at the prelates whom Francis had
put in charge of the proceedings rather than at the Pope himself. But
the fact that Francis had seemed to favour the proponents of a
relaxation of discipline, with the German theologian Cardinal Walter
Kasper at their head, meant that the Pope was often seen as the real
target. Of those who have stood up for the traditional teaching and
discipline, it was Cardinal Burke who came closest to direct criticism
of the Pontiff, saying openly that it was a mistake to allow discussion
on an issue inseparably linked to doctrine.

The Italian Vatican-watcher Sandro Magister has reported that
curialists who believe the Pope is on their side are worried by the
attacks and have formed a “Cenacle of the Friends of Pope Francis”,
meeting monthly under the guidance of Cardinal Kasper and the Italian
Cardinal Francesco Coccopalmerio. They may have reason to be worried,
but it may be that the danger is real not for the Pope himself but for
their pretensions to be his authentic interpreters. There are signs that
the Pope is retreating from their advanced positions. Recently his
teaching on the hot-button issues where the Church is most in conflict
with modern society has been sounding much more traditional.
Expectations are that the next instalment of what is in reality a single
synod in two acts will not deliver the outcome the progressives are
hoping for.

If that is the case, we will soon discover who the Pope’s true
friends are. Already there are signs that the secular media are
discovering that Francis is not the flower child they were hoping for,
and are beginning to turn on him. The Pope himself has recognised that
he has perhaps aroused expectations than cannot be fulfilled, and we
must hope that the “friends” of today do not become the enemies of
tomorrow, as happened to Paul VI after he issued Humanae Vitae.

In reality, honest and open critics like Cardinal Burke have never
been anything like “enemies” of the Pope. Francis has called for honest
and open debate, and those who have respectfully taken up his
invitation, without careerist acquiescence, are more than “His
Holiness’s loyal opposition”; they are his real friends.

The duties of faithful Catholics towards the Pope are respect,
obedience in matters of Church law and submission in matters of
doctrine, not acclaim for his every word and action. It has been
distressing recently to see attacks from quarters that were hardly
Ultramontanist, or even particularly courteous under Benedict, against
those deemed to show insufficient enthusiasm for Francis.

It was a mistake to demote loyal servants of the Church like Cardinal
Burke who, as even his opponents concede, is wholly innocent of
careerism. It goes against the political wisdom of keeping your friends
close and your “enemies” closer (and, in fact, the cardinal has been
freer to defend and promote his views more widely since his demotion).

Disappointed advocates of change may openly turn on Francis after the
synod. Others, including some of the better disposed observers, suggest
this is a pontificate running out of steam. The Pope’s immense
popularity gives him a unique opportunity to heal the internal wounds of
the Church and to promote the Catholic faith in all its beauty, as a
promise of mercy and a call to conversion. This opportunity must not be
wasted.

There are embittered and ideological Catholics who mistake rigidity
for orthodoxy and venom for fidelity. The Holy Father is right to seek
to challenge and convert these people. But if he is to do so effectively
he must convince them first that he understands their concerns.

No true Catholic can be an enemy of the Pope. This year’s synod is
the ideal moment for Francis to show some of them that he is not theirs.

Fr Mark Drew holds a doctorate in ecumenical theology from the
Institut Catholique in Paris, and has also studied in Germany and Rome.
He currently serves at St Wilfrid’s, YorkThis article first appeared in the latest edition of the Catholic Herald magazine (05/6/15).

9 comments:

Anonymous
said...

Once again a Pope is not there to be popular and a rock star with the whole world loving him, when you have left wing celebrities, left wing politicians and all related liberals,lefties and Marxists in love with this Pope then my friends there is a problem. The Church is supposed to be against the world it is not in the business to be friends with every Tom, Dick and Harry. God bless His Grace Cardinal Raymond Burke, truly a brave and humble Prince of The Church who with the help of the Holy Ghost will be our next Holy Father and restore the Traditional Latin Mass to its proper place!!

The Holy Father wants priests to leave the rectories and minister to the needs of the poor in impoverished neighborhoods. This activity, in turn, will draw favorable attention from the news and entertainment media, which, again in turn, will lead to mass conversions from among the general population. Once everyone is converted, the catechetical work of JPII, and the liturgical work of BXVI, will resume. This seems to be Francis' overall pastoral plan.

There is so much craziness and confusion in our Church today, especially in these last 2+ years under the reign of Pope Francis. When is it going to stop!!! I'm sick and tired of all of these liberal, heretical, heterodox, modernist cardinals, bishops, priests, and religious who want change Church teachings and act like the Church belongs to them and having a pope who sits there in silence or promotes men like Walter Kasper! Things are so bad in the Church when you have wacked-out and wicked prelates like Cardinal Kasper and Cardinal Marx who act that Germany shouldn't listen to Rome or even the good African prelates who re-affirm the Church's teachings on marriage, the family and who and who cannot receive Holy Communion. Talk about real schismatics here! Cardinal Kasper could have been silenced years ago. He is evil, an agent of Satan and there are other prelates like him out there that have to go! These men must be targeted and exposed for who they are: traitors, liars, and modern-day Judas'. I wouldn't be surprised if Cardinal Kasper is a Freemason. There are so many nut-jobs (like Cardinal Luis Tagle) in the College of Cardinals, that I worry that the next pope will be worse! But I have hope in good solid orthodox, CATHOLIC cardinals like Cardinal Burke, Pell, Mueller, and Sarah (and Bishop Athanasius Schneider), just to name a few who would make great popes and restore the faith and the sacred liturgy, which has suffered dreadfully at the hands of modernists!!! Pray my dear Catholics for an authentic Catholic uprising! The Church must be taken back from the modernist crowd that suddenly resurrected in these past 2+ years! PRAY THE ROSARY, GO TO CONFESSION, RESIST THE ATTACKS FROM HELL...from the modernists, and from the culture! STICK WITH CHRIST AND OUR LADY!!! LIVE THE CATHOLIC FAITH...DON'T LOSE IT NOR GROW LUKEWARM TO IT!!!

Welp, I don't know about yous guys, but I've about had it with analysis of world and Church events. Enough of figuring out what's going on. I'm going to start (have started) doing what I can in my own little corner of the universe and among the half dozen circles of people I frequent, to build alliances and friendships for mutual protection and benefit from hell or high water.

If the Pope's a saint...I still need to build community of likeminded souls for my own soul's sake. If the Pope's...not a saint....I need to do my part to make up what's lacking in the Body of Christ even more.

If the government is suddenly going to become sane and constitutional...I'll reap the best rewards with a growing tribe of likeminded citizens around me. If the government goes mad with socialist secular hedonist dreams of grandure and 'final solutions' against Catholics....then I'll need as many allies among fellow citizens as I can muster.

I am intentionally seeking out non-Catholics as well as Catholics who belong to ethnicities and tribes I have not hitherto frequented. I need to build bridges and spread the Gospel far and wide.

Yes, it's partially out of selfish worries and a sense of self-preservation but I hope it's also inspired by the need to stop worrying or hyper-analyzing world events and start DOING and MAKING the news.

Let's change the world. I'm gonna have a BBQ and then go to the Latin mass ;-)

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About Me

”The views expressed on this
social network are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of my bishop or the Diocese of Savannah.” Comments that I post do not necessarily reflect my views or the views of the Bishop of the Diocese of Savannah.
I am a priest of the Diocese of Savannah ordained in 1980 at the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist. I am currently the pastor of Saint Anne Church in Richmond Hill, Georgia. I am the former Director of Vocations from 1986 to 1998 and former Director of Liturgy and Diocesan Master of Ceremonies from 1985 to 1991.